Virginia General Assembly Update – Week 8

State legislation: Session is scheduled to end just over a week from now (on March 9). This week the Virginia General Assembly sent harmful and dangerous bills to Governor Youngkin’s desk that would force health plans to cover contraceptives and even some abortion-inducing drugs, create an unprecedented and sweepingly broad “right” to contraception and sterilization, and legalize commercial sales of marijuana. If you have not done so already, please act now on our alert urging a veto of the contraceptive mandate bill. Please be on the lookout too for potential upcoming alerts.

The House and Senate budgets are now in conference. Discussions among budget conferees from both chambers will increase in the coming days as they work toward an agreement on budget provisions.

Federal legislation: If you have not already done so, please act on the USCCB alert to tell your members of Congress to oppose bills and resolutions that claim to protect problematic “rights” to IVF and other “assisted reproductive technologies” that cause the death of countless human embryos and violate human dignity.The need to accompany and support the increasing number of families struggling with infertility is real. But after largely misunderstanding a recent ruling by the Alabama supreme court, many members of Congress – including those who consider themselves pro-life – are in a rush to impose a new national “right” to IVF and other technologies that threaten preborn human lives and turn people into property (like surrogacy, gene editing, and cloning). At least one of the current proposals could also threaten religious hospitals, charities, schools, and other organizations that do not enable or cover these procedures, and could even apply to minors.

Pregnant and need help? Click here to find pregnancy resources offered by our two dioceses.

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In prayer and in public, your voices are urgently needed to bring Gospel values to bear on vital decisions being made by those who represent you.

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The Virginia Catholic Conference is the public policy agency representing Virginia’s Catholic bishops and their two dioceses.